If your father’s a coffee addict, one present that would really be appreciated this Father’s Day is a personalised coffee mug. Whether you choose a humorous design, something nostalgic or just his name to stop anyone else using his mug at work, it’s a unique present that useful too.
To decorate your own mug, you’ll need:
- A white or plain-coloured thick pottery mug
- An oil-based paint pen, or ceramic paints and brushes (available from hobbycraft, Amazon, Staples and other leading retailers)
- Paper and pen
- Tracing paper, sticky tape, pencil and family photos (optional)
- Whiteboard marker (optional)
- Start by working out your design. If you’re not entirely confident in your creative ability, it’s best to choose something very simple, such as a name, the word ‘DAD’ or a simple handwritten slogan.
- Simple designs or patterns can be drawn directly onto the mug. Practice first with a whiteboard marker, then draw the design over the top with the special pen or paints. Some brands of paint require that the mug is ‘fired’ in the oven to set the design, and this normally involves putting it in a cold oven, then turning the heat to 180 degrees Celsius and waiting for 30 minutes. Check your paint instructions to see if you need to do this, and how. Any residue from the whiteboard marker can be wiped off after firing.
- For more complicated designs, practice them on paper first. Line drawings taken from photos work well. Select a photo, and put some tracing paper over the top. Draw round the outline of the figure in the photo using a soft pencil, then tape the tracing paper to the side of the mug with the right (pencil) side innermost. Scribble over the design with a pencil, then remove the tracing paper. A faint image should remain, and you can go over this with the special paint or pens to make it permanent.
Why not finish off your gift with a presentation pack of coffee beans? At the Wholesale Coffee Company, we stock a wide range of coffee beans including sample selections, all at great wholesale prices. To find out more, visit our coffee beans page.
